During maintenance or adjustment on a die press, the space between upper and lower dies is usually maximized. The slide attached to the upper die serves as a top-dead-center reference point. Maintenance or adjustments may require part or all of a tool, or the user""s body, to come between the upper and lower dies. Accidental looseness in the die brake mechanism causes a safety hazard to exist. A slide lock mechanism prevents this type of accident.
For example, published Japanese patent number 10-29100 discloses a conventional slide locking device including a plurality of threaded shafts disposed on either side of the slide. Means for pivoting moves the threaded shafts up and down, and means for locking locks and unlocks the slide. Accommodating changes in the top-dead-center position caused by different die heights is difficult. Changing the die height changes the top-dead-center position by the same amount. Locking the slide at a new top-dead-center position requires adjusting the threaded shafts by the same amount as the top-dead-center position change.
In the conventional slide locking device, there is no linkage between the slide adjusting mechanism and the threaded shafts. Thus, if die height is changed, the threaded shafts must be manually and visually raised or lowered. This makes the operation complex and can lead to problems that include forgetting to lock the slide.
An object of the invention is to provide a slide locking mechanism that allows a slide to be locked without complex operations.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a slide locking mechanism with a direct drive control that allows a slide locking mechanism to be locked despite previous adjustments in die height.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a slide locking mechanism with an electronic drive control that allows the slide locking mechanism to be locked despite previous adjustments in die height.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a slide locking mechanism with an electronic drive control that allows the slide locking mechanism to locked at any slide position without manual adjustment.
Briefly stated, the present invention provides a slide locking device containing a threaded member projected from a press slide. A projection is disposed on the upper end of the threaded member. Means for raising and lowering the threaded member raises and lowers the threaded member in tandem with a slide adjustment mechanism. Disposed on a lower surface of a press crown is a plate, means for moving the plate, and blocks slidably supporting the plate. The press slide is locked when the lower surface of the projection and the upper surface of the plate abut each other.
According to an embodiment of the invention, there is provided a slide locking device comprising: a threaded member projected from the slide, means for raising and lowering the threaded member in tandem with die height adjustments, means for locking the threaded remember at a locked position, the locking means including a plate formed with a cut-out through which the threaded member loosely fits, means for moving the plate to a locked position, and a projection formed at an upper end of the threaded member so that the lower surface thereof abuts an upper surface of the plate in a locked position.
According to another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a means for raising and lowering a threaded member comprising: means for preventing the threaded members rotation, a worm wheel including a threaded section in an inner perimeter section thereof, the threaded section meshing with a threaded section of the threaded member, a worm shaft meshing with an outer perimeter of the worm wheel, means for transferring drive force from the slide adjusting mechanism to the worm shaft, and the means for transferring connected to a slide adjusting mechanism.
According to another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a means for raising and lowering a threaded member comprising: means for preventing the threaded member from rotating, a worm shaft meshing with an outer perimeter of a worm wheel, a motor driving the worm shaft, means for electronically measuring the die height, means for electronically detecting the position of the threaded member, means for measuring a position of the threaded member, and a control device for raising and lowering the threaded member based on a value measured by the die height measuring means.
The above, and other objects, feature and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals designate the same elements.